After consultation with many fellow supporters of my proposed change in the California Republican Party Bylaws, I made the very difficult decision just a few minutes ago to withdraw the change.
To make a long story short, while I am confident that the votes were there to pass the change at the convention, the matter was becoming extremely divisive due to a lot of misinformation being spread about the proposal, and its effects.
The reality is that as long as someone can register Decline To State and elect to vote in either major party’s primary, we will continue to see the percentage of DTS voters steadily increase at the expense of party registration. Both political parties are going to eventually have to confront this issue head on.
My sincere appreciate to the hundreds of CRP Members who had indicated their support, and just because we will not be pursuing this important change this month does not believe we will now ignore the deteriorating effect of the status quo on our party registration.
I will close by saying that a political party cannot long endure if it focuses only on winning elections without thought to being prepared to do so with a majority that can govern using that party’s principles and positions on the issues. Proposals like the "top two/closed general" measure that was "blackmailed" onto the upcoming June ballot, if passed, will lead to a "mushy middle" where taxpayers and those who believe in individual and liberty will be the losers.
September 11th, 2009 at 12:00 am
What are you trying to do, make general elections competitive?!
September 12th, 2009 at 12:00 am
This remains the reason I will not monetarily support the California Republican committee. Winning elections is all that matters and the Democratic party in California has consistently proven that axiom. You don’t win elections when non-party members vote for your candidates.
September 12th, 2009 at 12:00 am
I’m glad the resolution has been pulled. My belief is that a lot of good conservatives have left our party and gone DTS because we haven’t been living up to our stated principles and we have lost credibility as the party of fiscal discipline. I don’t think we should penalize these voters because our party has been blowing it. Once we get back our believability and credibility as good fiscal stewards, I believe DTS and others will flock to being Republicans again.
September 12th, 2009 at 12:00 am
The Republican Party continues to make itself less relevant every day. We are the party of fiscal responsibility, but look at many levels of government you see just the opposite.
We are the party of family values, but look at the scandals the Republican Party generates, from Sanford to Duvall.
No it is not a media bias, it is these Republican’s saying one thing and then doing the opposite.
As long as many in Republican leadership continue the 100% for me or you are against me, the party will continue to lose.
As long as some who claim or have held positions of leadership secretly back far, far left Democrats in local elections in an attempt to prove a personal point, the Republican Party will continue to decline.
September 12th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Thank you Jon for pulling your ill thought-out proposal. I commend you for not slamming the door to DTS voters who will support Republican candidates.
September 14th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Maybe, Bob, you’d like to give us an education on just how allowing faux Democrats to vote in the Republican primary does anything for the Republican party or position other than weaken potential condidates?
September 14th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Many DTS folks are voters who tilt rightward and want to vote for a useful, winning Republican but who don’t support the party leadership’s religious bias.
Conservatism doesn’t mean religious; the religious right has hijacked the term.
We need sane, statewide-electable individuals who believe in min. gov’t and maximum freedom.
Stop preaching about “Family values” (codeword for “beat a queer”) – esp when those pols yapping about that fall hard (Duvall). Concentrate on reinforcing Prop 13,
actively working with NRA to stop more bad gun laws, and minimizing gov’t interference in peoples’ lives and you’ll start winning elections outside of Orange County.
CRA, have you noticed you only hold approx 1/3rd of the legislature? Nobody screws up that badly unless your message stinks and your marketeers reinforce the stench.
Republicans need to return to Goldwater small-L libertarianism – without the preachiness, and without the Ron Paul “elbow-patch-sportscoat high school algebra teachers wanting to privatize the sidewalks.” (Apt description of L’s by George Will).
Bill Wiese
San Jose CA
September 14th, 2009 at 12:00 am
Many DTS folks are voters who tilt rightward and want to vote for a useful, winning Republican but who don’t support the party leadership’s religious bias.
Conservatism doesn’t mean religious; the religious right has hijacked the term.
We need sane, statewide-electable individuals who believe in min. gov’t and maximum freedom.
Stop preaching about “Family values” (codeword for “beat a queer”) – esp when those pols yapping about that fall hard (Duvall). Concentrate on reinforcing Prop 13,
actively working with NRA to stop more bad gun laws, and minimizing gov’t interference in peoples’ lives and you’ll start winning elections outside of Orange County.
CRA, have you noticed you only hold approx 1/3rd of the legislature? Nobody screws up that badly unless your message stinks and your marketeers reinforce the stench.
Republicans need to return to Goldwater small-L libertarianism – without the preachiness, and without the Ron Paul “elbow-patch-sportscoat high school algebra teachers wanting to privatize the sidewalks.” (Apt description of L’s by George Will).
Bill Wiese
San Jose CA